The east London MP pledged the party's support for junior doctors in their fight against the government's contract imposition.

Junior doctor contract

'Let there be no doubt Labour stands with the junior doctors,' she said.

Jeremy Hunt had mishandled the dispute and vilified the juniors and their union, said Ms Abbott, treating them as 'the enemy within'.

'But it is absolutely clear to the public that the responsibility for this dispute lies at the door of Jeremy Hunt himself.'

The dispute, she added, demonstrated the 'collapse of morale amongst NHS workers as a whole'.

Ms Abbott promised that a Labour government would restore student bursaries for nurses, midwives and other healthcare workers, which have been scrapped by the government.

She also pledged to end the private finance initiative (PFI) in the NHS by refusing to sign another public-private finance contract if Labour takes power. The party would also set up a PFI monitoring unit to support NHS providers to to hold contractors to account.

'Our NHS,' she said, 'is not there for investment bankers and private equity specialists to rake off profits.'

Ms Abbott said the health and care systems were dependent upon tens of thousands of EU workers. 'We need to be clear that an end to freedom of movement could be a disaster for the NHS and social care. And we need to demand assurances from the government about the EU workers already here.'